Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Putting Feet to Love

Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. 
--Jesus
If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way.
-- Buddah


Last night I happened to catch the end snippet of NBC news. They had a short clip of the disturbing conflict in Syria and the young, helpless victims of the seemingly unending hate. My heart caught. How can I be confronted with these sweet children's faces and do nothing? Just yesterday in my post I talked about love in action, and that very night this story caught my eye.

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I have been receiving a daily Lent message from Fr. Robert Barron and today's message was about giving (wouldn't you know it). In it, he encourages readers to give whenever you are asked, citing Matthew 5:42: Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Fr. Barron challenges people to give to anyone-- all the mail invites for money (assuming they are legitimate, of course), all the panhandlers, even if it's just a dollar or two. He encourages people to cut back on other areas, like maybe what they order from the menu, and give that savings away. That's quite a challenge.

Everyone, of course, is convicted to do their part in their own way. Heaven knows there are many, many children in need of someone to care with action, in the world and in our own country. Tonight, my husband and I will sit down and look through the organizations helping children, as suggested by NBC News, and choose one.

Ultimately the answer to war is that Love would triumph over all the hate, but in the meantime, maybe we can find a way to put feet to that sentiment.






25 comments:

  1. My favorite to give to and help children is St. Jude's. Seriously? children and cancer? I know you can relate to that...

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    1. Oh yes, what a wonderful suggestion. Thank you!

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    2. https://shop.stjude.org/GiftCatalog/donation.do?cID=14262&pID=24671

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  2. It so hard when you hear about suffering and wonder what you can do to help. I have a friend headed out in a couple weeks to serve as a midwife in a 3rd world country, and I just applaud her. I look forward to the day when my kids are grown and my hubby and I can head out and put ourselves to serious work where it will make the biggest difference. For now, prayers are probably the best we can do. That, and we donate to our church where funds go directly to volunteers who are on the ground, working. https://www.lds.org/topics/humanitarian-service/church

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    1. Crystal thank you for this avenue to give as well. It's nice to have a list of resources where the money goes directly to needs. Our church has worked through Samaritan's Purse too. I have a good friend in Africa right now learning ways to serve. What a heart of courage and faith!

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  3. What a great idea, Julie. I like the idea that you and your husband are going to find an organization together to support. Looking forward to seeing what you choose! :)

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    1. Probably one from NBC's site, but man, I just can't sit back on this one.

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  4. You might want to look into one of the organizations that lets you sponsor a child on a monthly basis. You can make quite a difference that way. I've sponsored over a dozen during the last forty years.

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    1. Yes.. great idea here too. I love all the suggestions. A great way to touch a child's life and make a difference.

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    2. We sponsor a child through UNBOUND.ORG which we found through our church (Catholic). We get occasional letters, photos, most of the money goes to her and not to administrative costs. This is a great post, Julie, and I know how you feel. I have seen and heard things so many times that it just makes me crazy. At least this way, I know that some of my money each month is going to help one person in the world. Also, sometimes I think we miss things right in front of our face--our moms' group has a meal train--when someone is in need or just had a baby. This is a way to help a family/child, and the Internet makes it easy. If your church or a group you are in, doesn't have something like this set up--it's easy for you to do and super low maintenance. And you can set them up for hospitalizations, babies, surgeries, etc. You wouldn't believe the difference it makes when people don't have to worry about making food or even having the conversation with the people bringing over the food.

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    3. Margo, this is such a great comment with so many good suggestions. You make a good point too: there is a lot of good research and ideas on the internet, both of legit places to give to and showing what percentage of your money goes directly to your cause. Thank you!

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  5. Following Jesus with all our hearts always involves our feet as well! Can you imagine getting to heaven without having done what he asked? Another lovely post, Julie. Thanks for the uplift.

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    1. Mary Ann, I'm afraid I don't act near as much as I should. Thanks.

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  6. World Peace. That's all I want. And a hamburger, if possible.

    Good post, Julie, and if you can't give financially, give with your time...sometimes that's the hardest thing to give. Each year I do volunteer work for the American Diabetic and the Alzheimer's Associations, to help in their fundraising efforts. I also do Relay for Life for the Cancer Association. As far as world problems go, I still give to AMFAR as well. And of course, I give used pillows, blankets and bags of dog food to the local shelters. If we each do a little bit for others...maybe a lotta bit will get done.

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    1. Mike, you are a shining example and I know you use your own experiences to feed this empathy in action.

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  7. There are some great charities that I know of, if you want to look into them. The one getting a lot of attention lately is http://www.savethechildren.net/ - which put out that one-second a day video. I also love http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/ dedicated to ending human trafficking - helps a lot of children. In case you needed ideas, this is something my husband and I try to do as well. :)

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    1. Great suggestions, thank you so much! Yes, human trafficking is another sick area, isn't it? Thank you Danyelle!

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  8. I'm a big fan of World Vision and Operation Christmas Child. :)

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    1. We ended up going through Samaritan's Purse, who organizes Operation Christmas Child (so love that project!)

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  9. I definitely feel my heart tug when I see some one in need. I used to review books for several educational journals, and they always sent two copies. I would collect them and add more books that I purchased at Barnes & Noble and donate them to schools that could not afford classroom libraries.

    I am donating my time to volunteer for different things now because I feel like if I can help someone else, I feel like I'm doing something instead of focusing on me.

    I also like doing the Salvation Army angels around Christmas time, but I haven't been able to do that in the past two years.

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    1. Oh Alexandra, that's exactly the kind of thing I'm talking about. And yes, I do like when I take the focus off myself a bit.

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  10. One more I thought I would add for people reading through your comments--the Heifer Project. Why I love this organization so much is that they provide animals for people to raise to help them become independent. In years past, when I had people to buy for that I didn't know what to buy, I've bought chickens or a cow in their name and then donated it to the Heifer Project.

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    1. Margo, I love organizations like this that help people be independent with their living and support. I like the idea of giving in someone's name too. Great idea. I've heard of an organization that provides non wood-burning stoves to women so they don't have to venture outside the protection of their group to find wood.

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  11. I tend to give when people ask, too, though it does seem like EVERYONE and their mother is running a marathon these days and is asking for sponsors. I give to them anyway!

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    1. Nina, I have to admit, this is an idea that pushes me; our budget is tight. But I also know loosening one's grip somehow has a way of creating enough.

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